I am looking for a table for my entryway but I don't want to pay store prices for it. I figure the best way to get a nice table for a cheap price is to go to a garage sale. I'd seen numerous signs around my area advertising garage sales today and figured this may be a good way to get a cheap table. I got up early this morning armed with $50 and a cup of coffee. I went to one of the nicer subdivisions close to my house and started my search for a table. I didn't find the table I was looking for but I did find an interesting financial story.

I stopped at this one house because they had one monster of a garage sale. They had so much stuff (no table though), I thought it was a multi-family garage sale. The owner seemed nice so I started making small talk by making a comment on how much stuff they had for sale. She said that they had to get rid of everything quickly. Pushing a little further, I asked if they were about to make a big move. She said that times were pretty hard since her husband lost his job about a year ago. I took that to mean that they had blown through all of their savings and probably had to find cash quickly.

What I didn't understand is why they still had all this "stuff". They had 2 nice fairly new SUV's (aka: gas guzzlers) parked in the yard; complete with nice fancy rims. I also saw 4 jet ski's and a nice boat all of which had a "for sale" sign on them. If her husband lost his job over a year ago, I didn't really understand why they had not sold the "toys" a year ago.The prices on the boat and jet ski were VERY cheap and had I been in the market for a boat or jet ski, I probably would have bought them myself. I think they probably tried to hold onto them as long as they could thinking things might change.

There were so many questions I wanted to ask but it wasn't my place to do so. I didn't know anything about these people so I probably wouldn't have gotten many answers anyway. I also didn't want to risk getting kicked off their property for being so nosey. Maybe if I had the full story, it may have explained their situation a little better.

Let me hear your thoughts? What would you have done?

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Image Credit: John Beagle

You know how you sometimes have those days that you feel sort of blah. Not necessarily in a good mood and not necessarily in a bad mood. I had one of those days today...until this happened.

I had to go to the bank today to make a few changes to my account. Once I got out of the car, I saw this woman standing outside crying. I started to ignore it and continue about my business but I stopped and asked her is she was okay.

Apparently, she really needed someone to talk to because that opened the floodgates. She flew into my arms like I was an old friend and sobbed for what seemed like an eternity. Once she finally calmed down, she told me that she had just went in to try to make an arrangement to keep her home but the bank would not work with her.

I didn't get into the details but I tell her that I hoped everything would work out for her. She thanked me for listening and then went on her way. After that, my day changed for the better.

I had to ask myself why I was feeling blah when things are good in my life. My mortgages and all of my bills are up to date. I have a good job that pays a decent salary. I have great family and friends. Sometimes, you have to stop and put things in prospective. I have nothing to be blah about; I just need to remember how lucky I am. Things could certainly be alot worse! I don't talk alot about religion on my blog but I have to say I am not only lucky but I am blessed.

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It never fails. Everytime I turn on the TV, I hear more depressing news about how bad the economy is. Much as I try to ignore it, I just can't get away from it. Even when I'm not watching TV, I can see it all around me. Not only is it the rising gas prices and rising prices on food (due to the high gas prices), it's also the numerous foreclosure and "for sale" signs in my neighborhood and my shrinking 401k balance.

I personally feel that things will get worse before they get better. I don't think sending out a few hundred dollars will stimulate the economy. If you are already behind on mortgage payments and barely making ends meet, this money will help but it probably won't turn things around that much.

I can't control the economy, but to an extent, I can control how I handle my finances in a slow economy. I've decided I'm going to make a few changes to things I do and try to save a little extra money just in case. I feel my job is safe but things can change. If my company decides to reduce the workforce, and I am part of that reduction, I want to be prepared.

Some of the changes I am making include:

Eating Out. My friends and I usually go out and have dinner and drinks at least once or twice a week. This can add up pretty quickly when you eat dinner and have a few drinks (or alot depending on how work is going). At our last outing, we were discussing how hard it is to make ends meet. We decided that in order to save money, we would start getting together at someone's house each week instead of going out to a restaurant. We'll buy and make our own drinks and someone will cook. We all live pretty close so this will work out alot better and cost less money.


Extra Money. I posted the other day about Revolution Money Exchange. It's a money transfer service similar to Paypal but without the fees. If you sign up before April 15, 2008, you will get a $25 signup bonus. $25 won't pay the mortgage but it certainly helps. Every little bit helps. If I see a service that offers a signup bonus and I don't have to pay for it, I usually take advantage of it. I also use survey sites like PineCone Research and programs like Mypoints and Upromise to bring in a little extra cash

Putting Off Purchases. There are a couple of minor home improvements that I want to do around my house. They aren't necessary and are wants instead of needs. I've saved the money to make these improvements but I think I will hold off a little while longer to see how things play out in the economy.

Are you handling your finances any differently in this market?